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NAMES & FACES

The Inimitable Ray Charles

Tom Hanks, who filmed "The Da Vinci Code" in England in August, is in D.C. for an Imax premiere. (By Gareth Cattermole -- Getty Images)

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A Braille copy of the February 2004 issue of Playboy magazine was among the Ray Charles memorabilia donated to the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History yesterday.

"He really did read it for the articles," joked curator John Hasse of the photoless version of the adult entertainment magazine. Charles, who was blind by 7, died of liver disease June 10, 2004. He was 73.

Hasse was joined at the ceremony by former U.S. transportation secretary Rodney Slater , Rep. Diane Watson (D-Calif.), who sponsored a bill to have an L.A. post office renamed for the soul singer, and Charles's longtime friend and manager Joe Adams , reports The Post's J. Freedom Du Lac.

Also included in the collection were a Braille keyboard, three costumes, a chess set for the blind and a pair of Charles's signature Ray-Ban sunglasses perched on a white mannequin head.

Tuesday saw the release of a 75th-birthday tribute album to the star, "Genius and Friends," and "Pure Genius -- The Complete Atlantic Recordings (1952-1959)," a boxed set that features nine hours of Charles's work.

Select items from the donation will go on display at the museum Oct. 28.

-- Compiled by Korin Miller from staff reports

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